Here you can share your experiences with substances that are ingested, inhaled, or otherwise consumed for the purpose of relieving RLS/WED, other than prescription medications. For example, herbal remedies, nutritional supplements, diet, kratom, and marijuana (for now) should be discussed here. Tell others of successes, failures, side effects, and any known research on these substances. [Posts on these subjects created prior to 2009 are in the Physical Treatments forum.]

Important: Posts and information in this section are based on personal experiences and recommendations; they should not be considered a substitute for the advice of a healthcare provider.

I have developed a natural cure for RLS. I have all the information at my website. I have been free of RLS for almost a year now, and my legs feel amazing.

Basically there are 4 stages to recovery. The first, and most important is the healing of the inflammation in your legs that is causing the RLS.
Less inflammation = less RLS. This is as universal a truth as you will ever hear in regard to Restless Legs Syndrome.

All the information at my website is free. If you follow the guidelines, you'll start feeling better within a couple of weeks.

This is not a "personal" cure that is only going to help a few. This will help EVERYONE that is willing to try it out (even the hard-liners on this forum that seem to need to respond to every post).

It doesn't matter what sort of heavy duty drugs you're taking for your RLS. You don't need to go off of them. Eventually your inflammation will lessen and you'll be able to wean off at your own pace.

Um, yeah. I'm glad it has helped you, but your premise is wrong. RLS is not caused by inflammation in the legs. It's a neurological disorder caused by a problem with neurotransmitters in the brain.

And be careful with supplements. Many can be quite active, and work as medications without the careful studies that medications have to have. St. John's Wort can help RLS, but it interacts with just about everything.

It is all a bit 'alternative' and maybe ok but when as rls sufferer who is already tweaking/adjusting several meds at any given time on any given day to suit circumstances and situations, I personally (maybe wrongly) could not think of starting into another regime.

Maybe for someone whose rls was minimal and only intermittent and wasn't already on a treatment plan. Perhaps I shouldn't 'knock' what I haven't tried.

I also noticed information recently that informed that St John's Wort interacts with most of my meds.

Just a thought ( I am pharmacologically niaive) but if rls was caused by inflammation then would an anti-inflammatory such as brufen not help ??

But Dave - if it has worked for you, then well done, and may your symptoms continue to leave you alone.

I'm not selling anything. Please check the website before you insinuate that I am secretly selling something.

As far as the intensity of my RLS ... I can trade stories with anyone. I'm not saying my restless legs were worse than yours or anyone else's ... let's call it a tie.

When it comes to a point that you fantasize about chopping your legs off just to get some relief ... I consider that to be a case of intense restless legs.

The fact that I used to have to watch television standing gives you another idea of how it used to be. Don't even talk to me about airplanes. That was hellish.

Lastly, in regard to St. John's Wort, I'm not saying that it is or isn't something that conflicts with various meds, but consider this. They've run numerous tests that show that St. John's Wort is as just as effective an anti-depressant as any other pharmaceuital on the market.

It's just something to keep in mind. There's always 2 sides to every statement. At this time Big Pharma doesn't want anyone using alternative medicine ... but if you watch carefully, you'll see that the major drug companies are slowly integrating herbs into their repetoire.

If you have a problem with St. John's Wort, then don't take it. There are plenty of other natural anti-inflammatories. Curcumin, Cayenne, Ginger Root, Devil's Claw, Skullcap, Licorice Root and Omega 3.

Yes, I saw that too late. Zach mentioned that it looked like a sales type of website but wasn't. Zach, I apologize for that. I misread your post. I'm a little trigger happy because I know I'm going to get slammed.

I also forgot to respond to the question about anti-inflammatories. On my website there is a page dedicated to the dangers and side-effects of NSAIDs
(pharmaceutical anti-inflammatories).

There have been tons of labratory tests in the past proving that curcumin and ginger root are equally effective, if not more effective than NSAIDs, and they don't present any side-effects.

The only comment I wish to add at this point, is I think it is dangerous to get into an argument about the root cause of RLS.

I don't think anyone on the planet knows that at this point. At least I haven't personally read anything that says with definitive proof "This is what causes RLS".

Maybe its Imflammation.. Maybe its Neurotransmitters? Maybe its both, or maybe its neither? There is very confusing data on this particular issue.

That's the only real issue I have with any statements about what causes RLS, no matter whose opinion it is.

As for this particular web site. You would really, REALLY benefit from adopting a more traditional and organized layout.. I know not everyone is a genius with that type of stuff. But it is just very cluttered and you will likely lose a lot of people just from their initial impression of the page.

Keep it simple I say.. graphics are nice, they have a place. But it really does look like a haphazard billboard (not in the sense you are selling something, but that you look like every other site that is)

In these posts, you made two statements about many tests and studies having been done, ie "They've run numerous tests that show that St. John's Wort is as just as effective an anti-depressant as any other pharmaceuital on the market." and "There have been tons of labratory tests in the past proving that curcumin and ginger root are equally effective, if not more effective than NSAIDs, and they don't present any side-effects".

Many people require references for a statement like that to have any relevance for them, because simply anybody can make any sort of statement like that, eg. "Scientists have confirmed in numerous studies that consumption of pear juice causes asthma." It would be a good idea, if you care about being believed, to provde references in conjunction with the statement itself, or to preface it with "I think"/ "I am pretty sure", or to drop it altogether.

Here's some really interesting info about St. John's Wort. It talks a bit about how Pfizer sponsored one of the studies. My mother-law's cousin (how's that for a reference) is a retired Doctor that worked at the Mayo Clinic. He's now become an advocate for honest testing practices, and is trying to clean up these biased Drug Tests that Big Pharma has been conducting for years.

I don't know who Dr. Buchfuhrer is, but he's wrong if he says that RLS is not caused by inflammation.

This is simply an opinion of yours and the Doctor.

Obviously you are both entitled to your opinion. But please state it in such a manner so that people that read this post will know that it's an opinion based on your experience and what you've read.

If you said that "I don't believe that RLS is caused by inflammation" that's fine with me, and it's clearly just another opinion to consider for anyone that reads this thread.

My concern is that people who read this thread will see the firmness of your statement and believe that it's based on something tangible.

What I'm telling you is based on actual proof. The proof being, I have treated the inflammation in my legs, and my RLS has faded away to nothing. Others have followed the steps I layed out and experienced the same relief.

"My overall experience with MIRAPEX has been very positive. It's a medication that can be used with very low dose and works very, very well and both effectively and safe for most RLS patients." - Mark Buchfuhrer, MD

Now, here's the interesting part. Here are the potential side-effects of Mirapex ... as stated on the Mirapex website.

"MIRAPEX may cause you to fall asleep without any warning, even while doing normal daily activities, such as driving. Before taking MIRAPEX, talk to your doctor if you drink alcohol or take other medications that make you drowsy as these can increase the chance that MIRAPEX will make you feel sleepy or fall asleep when you should be awake. When taking MIRAPEX, hallucinations (seeing, hearing, feeling, or tasting something that isn’t there) may occur and you may sometimes feel dizzy, nauseated, faint or sweaty when you sit up or stand quickly.

The most commonly reported side effects of MIRAPEX that were more frequent than with placebo are nausea, dizziness, sleepiness, difficulty falling asleep, involuntary movement, and constipation. In clinical trials for advanced PD, the most commonly reported side effects of MIRAPEX that were more frequent than with placebo are low blood pressure when you sit up or stand quickly, involuntary movement, difficulty falling asleep, dizziness, accidental injury, hallucinations, and dream abnormalities. You should talk with your doctor if you experience these problems.

There have been reports of impulse control disorders and compulsive behaviors in patients taking certain medicines, including MIRAPEX. If you or your family members notice that you are experiencing new or increased gambling urges, increased sexual urges or other intense urges, such as compulsive shopping or eating, while taking MIRAPEX, talk to your doctor."

The above potential side-effects are real ... it's not a Saturday Night Live parody.

Do you have any idea what sort of incentives drug companies give doctors to push their products? It should be illegal, but it's not. The fact that this guy is doing a Mirapex commerical is frightening!

What really frustrates me is that people keep slamming herbal remedies because they've read about how there can be dangerous side-effects, or how they can mess with one's regular medication.

I did not experience a single side-effect during the past year ... and my legs are absolutely cured.

As I've mentioned before, my RLS was just as intense as anyone's on this board, and I managed to cure my ailment with vitamins, minerals and herbs.

Quite a few of us here KNOW Dr. Buchfuhrer and we are well aware of the extent of his involvement in pharma. He hasn't done anything to discredit himself in the eyes of anyone here and a few have even been to see him in person, as a patient.

Dr. B is one of the most knowledgeable folks in the country when it comes to RLS and has been working with RLS patients for around 30 years now. Why wouldn't he be involved with advocating medications he believes can help his patients?

Look, I get the whole naturalist binge.. I really do. But the minute you start espousing these big pharma conspiracy theories and attacking anything not-natural as bad, you instantly lose your audience.

You are posting on one of the single most skeptical communities when it comes to RLS treatment. Because many of us have seen it all. We've tried countless medications, countless natural or folk remedies, all kinds of things from countless folks before you.

We know what works for one person, does not work for another, and there really isn't much more to say.

I think it is a little disingenuous of you to come around and say "RLS is caused by inflammation in the legs" without having thus far cited one scientific based, academically peer reviewed study; but then go ahead and chastise someone else disputing your claim as if its simply an opinion.

Mirapex works for some people. You have a beef with the side effects? Then make your beef with the side effects and focus on pressuring doctors to be more responsible in their prescribing and warnings to patients.

That has nothing to do with Dr. B. He is one of our single most biggest advocates, and has listened and helped thousands of people starting from a time when no one else in the medical community cared and thought we were crazy.

You can dig up a Mirapex commercial or whatever you like, but you'll be opening a can of worms and won't be convincing anyone of anything.

We're not the standard citizen who doesn't understand the medical process. We are quite able to take care of ourselves. By the way, I don't think anyone here has said anything negative about herbal anything. Unless there was a legitimate and well-known warning about a particular substance.

Your fight is with the ignorant people you are trying to "save", not the pharmaceutical companies. We control their income, you convince the public and you in turn convince big pharma. But you won't convince anyone by defaulting to an attack position because they choose or prefer to use pharmaceuticals. You'll only piss them off.

I'm not attacking Dr. Buchfuhrer or anyone ... or any form of relief. I'm simply defending my own remedy ... because I know it works. And, I know it will work for anyone that tries it. It takes time and patience, but it will work.

All I did was post some facts to help new people to this board decide which route they would like to take.

If they choose Mirapex, or any other medication, that's their choice ... and certainly none of my business.